Use Use of Instagram as a tool for scientific dissemination: the role of witches in the history of chemistry

Abstract

This work aims to present a tool for scientific dissemination, by exploring the universe of witches and their relationship with Science. The study was developed with the voluntary participation of 87 spectators, covering people with varied knowledge, from elementary to higher education. The data collection took place through a google form through a qualitative approach to verify the relationships and the participants' interpretations about History of Chemistry (HQ) and witches in the low middle ages. The activity proved to be an excellent material for the insertion of discussions between the practical comic and the conceptions created, mainly by the media and literature, in the mystical universe involving the definition of witches. The observed results showed that the conception of the role of witches in history is erroneous and out of context, often linked to mysticism and without its true connection with the discovery of natural medicines. After the application of the activity, it was verified that the methodology developed was efficient in achieving the proposed objective and helping to demystify the predominantly bad image of witches and describe their importance in maintaining scientific knowledge through generations in the medieval period.